9 Helpful Tips For Working With A Graphic Designer

Whether or not you are a first-timer, working with a graphic designer can be intimidating and confusing. With these tips, I hope it will make the process easy for first-timers and repeat clients alike.

Tip # 1 - Have Realistic Goals & Expectations

Together with the project, provide your designer with clear goals for the project. If you don't have a goal, identify the reasoning behind it. You can ask yourself a question like: “what am I trying to achieve by doing this?” It may be a marketing effort to build brand awareness that ultimately increases sales or an advertisement for a specific audience to introduce a newly-released product. Be specific. Your designer also needs to know what your realistic timeline is. Let your designer know if you have a specific deadline you need to meet.‍‍

Tips: You can outline this information in a document and share it with your designer.

Tip # 2 - Have Project Components Ready

In graphic design, content is definitely king. Any projects that need information, like text and images, have to be ready and final before the design phase. These components are the designer's building blocks. We need it to visually design a project that your audience will love and appreciate.

Tip # 3 - Trust The Process And Your Designer

Sometimes a project might not go well. Many factors can cause this problem, but telling your designer what to do and how to do it won't help your cause. The process is there to meet specific goals. Your designer has been trained to solve a problem creatively on a daily basis. So trust the process, trust your designer, and keep an open mind.

Tip # 4 - Give Quality Feedback

When giving feedback, take note that the design should resonate with your audience and not with your taste. Your preference is not feedback. Feedback with reasoning is quality feedback. Be honest when giving your constructive thoughts. Just simply saying "I don't like it" won't help your designer. Tell your designer what you don't like and why. One example is you don't like the color because it doesn't resonate with your fun, adventurous target audience.

Tip: At times, it may be hard for you to identify what you don't like about the design. When this happens, break the design into categories of color, font, image, layout, and overall aesthetic and ask a question using each category.

Tip # 5 - Provide Helpful Visual Examples

Some clients have a specific vision of what they want for a project but find it hard to translate into words. If this applies to you, share a visual example to your designer. It would save both parties the time of guessing and mind-reading. It also gives you, the client, a form of reassurance moving forward.

Remember: Don't expect to have an exact replica of the visual examples you have provided. The visual examples are only for inspiration. Copying a design/idea may get you into a copyright lawsuit.

Tip # 6 - First Draft: Don't expect perfection

During the first draft of the project, expect an idea/design to be ugly and imperfect to the point that you hate it. A first draft is always a phase for a test drive. You and your designer are testing ideas and looking for problems at this stage. You will have a chance to perfect every aspect of the design in the refinement phase.

Remember: Depending on the contract you sign, you may have two or three revisions.

Tip # 7 - Make A Smart Refinement

You may have noticed my brand identity packages and subscription plans offer different refinement allowances. The reasoning behind it is to prevent unreasonable, no-basis, unnecessary changes in a project. It also saves you time and money. Keep in mind that every decision your designer made is intentional, backed up with goals and strategy. Your request for refinement should also follow the same format. To help you make the right decision, always reflect on your goals, target market, and strategy.

‍Tip: Know when to call it a day. Perfection is only an illusion.‍

Tip # 8 - Respect Turn Around Times

Freelance designers often work with multiple clients at times. They usually have projects scheduled in the coming months. One mishap on their schedule can throw off their entire deadlines. Be sure to meet the due dates assigned to you, and if you can't meet the deadline, let your designer know. It's better to be transparent than to leave them hanging.

Tip # 9 - Encourage Collaboration

Working with a designer is often through collaboration and partnership. Aim to create a healthy environment where asking questions, sharing ideas and disagreement are encouraged.